


The Priest and the Choice

by elwon



Series: Volcano & Hurricane [4]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, DCU (Comics)
Genre: Demon!Dick Grayson, Descriptions of the aftermath of a massacre, Father Todd, Gen, M/M, The Joker is his own warning, The joker dies!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-15
Updated: 2018-05-15
Packaged: 2019-05-07 10:51:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,800
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14669585
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elwon/pseuds/elwon
Summary: When the forces of good and evil converge on the church, Jason has a choice to make; do what they want or lose everything he holds dear, forever.





	The Priest and the Choice

**Author's Note:**

> While this series doesn't have a playlist, this fic was brought to you (in order) by Dark Doo Wop by MS MR, Seven Devils by Florence and the Machine, Demons by Sleigh Bells and Hurt by Johnny Cash (Nine Inch Nails cover)

It’s only when he hears the loud crash that Jason rushes outside to see what the hell is going on. The pot of tea he was preparing for the meeting with Sister Barbara to discuss Stephanie and Tim’s progress gets dropped to the floor in his hurry. At the church gates all hell seems to have broken loose, and all heaven too. Clustered outside the wrought iron front entrance are Bruce, still wearing a business suit, Dick, in workout clothes as if he was out for a run and got caught up in a very odd altercation, and a tall, imposing man-like demon that Jason can’t identify, wearing an outfit that wouldn’t look out of place in 1001 Nights. The three of them are caught in a large glowing demon trap that Alfred, Stephanie and Drake are powering, forced to their knees due to the overwhelming auras of the demons and the two angels that had come to Gotham two months ago, who are back again, with wings and robes still glowing, inside the gates and sneering at the demons.

Nearly everyone is talking at once; Alfred and Stephanie are reciting scripture for the demon trap, Bruce and the unidentified demon are talking in a language that Jason’s never heard before, while the two angels are saying combative phrases in Enochian. Dick is the only one silent, frowning while the chaos erupts around him. Jason does the only thing he can think of; he pulls out a gun and shoots it into the ground to make everyone stop for at least long enough for Jason to find out what’s going on. In retrospect, he’s lucky he’s taken to wearing his guns even when in sweatpants and a hoodie.

“OK, what the fuck is happening here? Can’t a man have some god damn tea in peace?” Jason yells, volume nowhere as loud as he wishes it was, but it’s good enough that Alfred and Tim turn to look at him. Drake’s concentration drops enough that the barrier flickers for a bare second, but it’s still long enough for Dick to step through and run towards Jason.

“Father! We need your help.” Dick says urgently, reaching out for Jason and the panic on his face worries Jason more than he’ll ever admit.

“You dare to speak to the Priest, demon? Begone.” Kal-el says in a nearly deafening tone. Dick staggers back, pushed by the force in the angel’s voice and Jason pulls his gun, training it on the angel on reflex. He still has nightmares about him. He’ll shoot the fucker right between the eyes if he tries anything on Dick again.

“You, _quiet_. You’ll get your turn.” Jason snaps out, holding the gun dead still on Kal-el and keeping his eyes trained on the angel who frowns, but goes silent. After all, Jason knows Dick won’t hurt him, but the angel is dangerous by just being there. “What do you want, Dick?”

“I swear, I didn’t know about this. I wouldn’t have come if I’d known.” Dick says, swallowing nervously. Jason gestures for him to continue with his free hand. “I didn’t realise Ra’s and Bruce were talking about _you_ when they brought up finding someone strong enough.”

“Get to the damn point, Dick.” Jason says, noticing that Alfred’s lowering his hands against the devil trap, letting some of the power dissipate, and Jason wasn’t expecting him to do that. He’ll have to ask him why later, though. 

“OK, so there’s this... Monster. He’s bad. I mean like pure evil, he feels _twisted_ and _wrong_ and _corrupted_ even to our kind. We found out that he’s headed to Gotham. Ra’s and Bruce think you’re the only one who can kill him, because well, you’ve stood up to Bruce and that angel over there without any real consequences.” Dick wrings his hands, and Jason wants to ask what the hell the last two months have been if not ‘real consequences’, but he knows Dick, and knows that he’s probably repeating what either Bruce or Ra’s have said. It’s obvious that Dick doesn’t want to continue talking, but he takes a breath and does. “So, we need you to destroy the monster, the Joker.” 

“Are you actually serious?” Jason turns to look at Dick, eyebrows raised in surprise. The last thing he’d have ever thought the demons would ask him to do is kill other monsters.

“Unfortunately, yes.” Dick looks down, his shoulders slumping despondently. Jason looks over to Bruce and the demon he supposes must be Ra’s, still inside the circle. They’re both staring at him intently, and the seriousness in both of their faces makes him think this is no joke.

“Do not listen to the lies of the Damned, Jason Todd.” Kal-el intones, voice thankfully quieter than it was before. Jason still hates him, even if he’s being more considerate of human eardrums than he was when Jason arrived. “You are a man of the cloth, on the side of God and his angels. You must do as you are tasked, and destroy the corruption that is the Joker for the Glory of the Lord.”

“You realise that you’re both asking me to do the exact same fucking thing, right?” Jason stares at Kal-el incredulously. “I mean, where’s the lie?” Kal-el glares back at him, face set like stone and not deigning to answer. “Why are you making this into a fight when you both agree?”

“You’ve been chosen, Father Todd. Out of all the peoples of the earth, only you have been found worthy.” Kon-el says, voice soft but carrying like a bell. His face is set in a gentle frown, like he’s not pleased to be placing a burden on Jason, but will do his job despite that.

“Father Todd, you’re the chosen one! Is there a prophecy? There must be a prophecy.” Tim says excitedly, only quietening down when Sister Stephanie gives him an incredulous look, and Kon-el rests a hand gently on his shoulder. Tim turns to look up at Kon-el, sending him a confused smile. Jason rolls his eyes at the two of them. Now is not the time, kids.

“There’s no prophecy.” Bruce sounds tired and exasperated, and honestly like he wants to be anywhere else but here, which is something else to puzzle about later, when everyone’s left and Jason isn’t trying to stop a bloodbath from occurring on the church steps.

“Father Todd is simply the most convenient human who happens to have the strength of will to defy both angels and demons.” Ra’s adds when it becomes obvious that Bruce isn’t going to offer any more information, no matter how helpful. “Only someone with that amount of will power will have a chance against the Joker. He is a force entirely unto himself, and has been our adversary for eons. You aren’t the first to be called to this, Todd. But with luck, you may be the last.” 

“Fuck no, I’m not doing this.” Jason says, setting his jaw determinedly and striding away from the whole sorry mess as fast as he can without actually running. He hears someone call his name, but he doesn’t turn around to check. Let them sort out that mess among themselves and leave the humans out of it. He makes it about sixteen steps before the guilt crashes over him at leaving Alfred and Barbara and to a lesser extent, Dick, to deal with the angels and demons by themselves. Sighing and swearing nearly silently under his breath, Jason twists on his heel and comes back.

“I knew you would not run, Jason Todd. You will praise the glory of His Name and destroy the demons.” Kal-el says with what passes for a satisfied smile on his face. Jason instinctively wants to tell him to go to hell, but he manages to restrain himself down to a less vitriolic response.

“OK, here’s the deal. I’ll give you both my answer _tomorrow_ , and in the meantime, you are going back to heaven.” Jason snarls, jabbing his finger into the air in the angels’ direction. “And you are going back to hell.” Jason points at the demons. 

“Father Todd, wait...” Bruce starts to speak but Jason cuts him off.

“I am going to think about it, and if any of you fucks even think about trying to sway me to your side I will be telling you both _no_. Got that?” Jason’s beyond done with this conversation, and it looks like everyone’s realised that.

“Very well. We’ll be here tomorrow night for your answer.” Ra’s says, eyes narrowed in what could be amusement or planning his murder, Jason’s not sure. Ra’s turns away, cape fluttering behind him as he gestures for Bruce to follow him. They disappear into their own portal and Jason feels a chill run down his spine at the fact that Alfred and Barbara’s barrier did nothing to stop them. Jason swallows down the unease and turn to the angels. Kal-el looks like he could break rocks between his teeth, but gives a short jerky nod, and both the angels leave with a loud bang of displaced air.

Jason looks at Alfred and Stephanie’s clammy pale faces, the way that Steph’s hands are shaking, and closes his eyes, trying to regain his mental balance. He has no idea how he’s going to get out of this one. 

***

Jason sneaks out of the Rectory sometime after midnight, needing to move and fresh air to clear his head after the insanity of earlier. They’d gone inside to inform the Diocese and try to work out a plan of action. Alfred and Barbara, who had arrived minutes after the demons and angels had left, had desperately tried to find something, anything they could, to help Jason. Even Tim and Stephanie had hit the books and internet. Jason, on the other hand, had retreated to his favourite chair with a bottle of whiskey and stared silently at nothing while letting everyone rush around him frantically. He’s pretty sure that there’s nothing they can do to get heaven and hell off his back. 

He’s wandered into the park, over to the kid’s playground. It’s the same playground he used to hang out with Dick in, way back when, with swings, a merry-go-round, see-saws, a jungle gym and giant tyres to climb over all set in some weirdly bouncy rubber flooring. Jason’s flopped down on the merry-go-round, lying on his back with an arm under his head while he smokes cigarette after cigarette and tries to look at the stars. There’s a bolt digging into his arm but he’ll take the minor discomfort over the thought of going back to St Sebastian’s. Jason watches the plumes of his cigarette smoke lazily drift up in the night sky like dragon’s breath. Dick finds him there, and Jason pays him no attention while Dick clambers onto the merry-go-round with him, laying down on his side to accommodate his wings and hesitantly reaching out to rest his hand on Jason’s shoulder.

“I’m not here to convince you to fight.” Dick whispers eventually, trying not to break the silence more than he needs to. “I... You know I had no idea about any of this right? I mean, I knew you were on the list of people to watch out for, but this? This is insane. If I thought it had a chance in Hell of working, I’d tell you to run and never look back.”

“I know.” Jason looks over to Dick’s worried face. Dick blows out a relieved breath and tries for a smooth confident smile. It falters under Jason’s heavy gaze, and something small in Jason’s chest snaps and breaks in sorrow and anger. Jason lifts his head to drop a light kiss on Dick’s blue fingers, reaching over to hold Dick’s hand with his cigarette still burning between his fingers. The heat of Dick’s skin rivals the end of his cigarette. Dick shifts over to Jason, resting his head on his shoulder, looking up at him. This close, all Jason can see is the bright glow of Dick’s eyes, it feels like he can see the galaxies in the light of Dick’s eyes that he couldn’t in the smog and light pollution filled skies of Gotham.

“Jay...” Dick curls his fingers into Jason’s hoodie, and Jason wonders since when did Dick have talons on his fingers. And actually, another thing comes to mind.

“Wait, I’m on a list? What list?” Jason says, trying not to roll his eyes when Dick huffs out a laugh in his face. 

“Of course you’d want to know that.” Dick smiles and it’s so much better than his last. “There’s a list of people to avoid, not do deals with, that kind of thing. Exorcists, magic users and plain deceitful bastards, mostly. Father Pennyworth is on it too, you know.” 

“Well, it’s nice to have recognition of my talents, his too, I guess.” Jason says wryly, not really sure if he should be flattered on not, considering where it’s got him.

“Do you know what you’re going to do?” Dick tilts his head down on Jason’s shoulder, and from his tone Jason can tell it’s a genuine question and not Dick trying to lead him to make a choice. He’s spent all day trying not to think about it while everyone else did something useful or practical in an attempt to get him out of having to do what both heaven and hell want him to do. Jason knows deep down that there’s no choice at all, really. He feels like he’s maybe never had a choice, with everything in his life building up to this and he _hates_ it. 

“Not a fucking clue, Dickie.” Jason sighs, lifting the cigarette up to his lips and inhaling. “And I really don’t want to talk about it.”

“That seems like a terrible idea.” Dick says, fingers flexing in his hold on Jason’s hoodie.

“We should do it immediately?” Jason interrupts him with a small grin. 

“Oh _you_.” Dick snorts fondly. “Hey, do you remember the last time we were in this park?”

“I remember you begging me to push this damn thing faster and faster while you were sitting on it.” Jason takes the last drag from his cigarette before it burns away completely. “I also remember going so fast that I fell, busted my lip and sprained my ankle.”

“Ha, yes you did.” Dick laughs, shaking his head a little, rubbing his hair into Jason’s shoulder. It reminds Jason of a kitten, and he doesn’t bother to bite back the fond smile the comparison causes.

“I don’t know what you’re laughing for, I also remember you jumping off while it was still spinning, yelling ‘I’ll kiss it better, Jay!’ and you, Mr Acrobat, landing wrong and breaking your arm.” Jason pockets his now unlit cigarette butt, and feeling the need to do something with his hand, twines his fingers into the gaps of Dick’s hand in his hoodie. 

“...I did. God, we were stupid kids.” Dick says, ducking his head down in embarrassment, three years on the gymnastics team in high school should have helped him to land better. 

“I was not a stupid kid. I was just stupid for _you_.” Jason protests, huffing into Dick’s hair. “Still am, really.”

“Alright, Mr straight A student, who is stupid for his amazing boyfriend, then and now.” Dick grins, shifting over slightly so that he’s leaning more on Jason, 

“You were a great boyfriend.” Jason grudgingly admits. He was, at least when he wasn’t dragging Jason into stupid decisions that ended with one or both of them hurt. So, probably about eighty per cent of the time.

“Were?” Dick asks sadly, and damn if that still doesn’t hit Jason in the heart like a bullet.

“Still are.” Jason rubs his thumb along the top of Dick’s fingers, ended up at one of the talons and running over the edge of it. It’s damn sharp, much cooler than the unholy heat of Dick’s flesh, and Jason can’t stop rubbing the pad of his thumb over it, again and again. He knows it wouldn’t take much effort from Dick for those talons to rip into someone and claw them to shreds. He tries not to picture it.

“So are you.” Dick leans up to drop a quick kiss to Jason’s cheek. Jason feels his eyes slip closed at the touch. It makes him ache for the old times, and all the times that were taken away from them by Dick dying and becoming a demon. Jason usually doesn’t even think of the what-ifs that could have been if things had been different, having too much to worry about in the present. But it’s the quiet affectionate moments like this that really sting. 

“Since I’m so great, sing that song for me.” Jason says. Just for a while he wants to pretend, wants to act like they’re normal lovers on a cheap date out from their small shitty apartment and pretending that their low-paying, soul sucking jobs aren’t the reason they’re in the park and not in some expensive restaurant or movie theatre. 

“Which song?” Dick kicks his feet out a little and Jason knows Dick’s messing with him. The innocent act is the exact thing that makes Jason know it. So Jason waits, wondering what else Dick’ll come up with to make Jason think he doesn’t actually know which song. Dick merely looks back at him, trying not to smile and keeping an innocent look in his eyes which fails every time he blinks.

“Which song. You know which song. _Our_ song.” Jason scoffs after a solid twenty seconds of silence. He pokes Dick in the cheek, watching him puff his cheeks up in retaliation. It’s a moment of silly cuteness that Jason really needed right now. 

“This world is gonna burn, burn burn burn, as long as we’re going down... Baby you should stick around, baby you should stick around... It’s all gone to shit, it’s out of our hands. Baby if you coulda known, you would hatch a plan, that’s my, that’s my man...” Dick sings softly, as the merry-go-round lazily spins underneath the night sky. “If we're gonna die, bury us alive. If you're searching for us, you'll find us side by side. That's my, that's my man. This world is gonna burn, burn burn burn. As long as we're going down... Baby you should stick around, baby you should stick around...”

***

Jason’s plan for today is less a plan and more a hope that everyone will agree to a sane compromise. He doesn’t expect it to happen, he’s a realist like that. The exact number of people present at what basically amounts to a war council, Jason’s not sure about. He does know that Sister Barbara has insisted on being present, which means that Cassandra will be there, and with both of them there, Stephanie will follow. Jason really wants a few people there as possible, but he’s not going to get his wish.

Drake arrives just as Sister Barbara’s car pulls up at the lot. He heads over to where Jason and Alfred are waiting for her and Jason groans under his breath. He’s got enough to deal with without adding an over eager teenager to the mix. Alfred drops a hand onto Jason’s shoulder and gives him a reassuring squeeze.

“Escort Sister Barbara in, will you? I’ll send Mr Drake off to school, where he should be.” Alfred says, pulling on his most stern look as he heads to intercept Tim. Jason nods, and helps Cass get Barbara’s wheelchair out of the backseat as he can hear Alfred threaten Tim with hours of brass polishing if he doesn’t get to school straight away. Jason looks up to see through the windscreen of the car that Tim’s pouting but leaving. “I will be telephoning the school to make sure you arrive, young man!” Alfred calls out, and Jason bites back his grin. Not quite fast enough to stop Barbara seeing it, though. She snorts and Jason shrugs, gesturing to her chair, now fully set up on the ground. Once Barbara’s in her chair and they get inside, settled around the kitchen table with tea, any of the good humour from the parking lot has evaporated in the face of what’s about to come. 

“Well, I looked through every damn book in the cathedral library that had any references to the Joker and came up with nothing. You’ll be going in with only whatever they tell you today.” Barbara says, glaring at her hands as if they’re to blame for her failure to find any information.

“They’re angels, right? Doesn’t that mean we can trust them?” Stephanie says after a few seconds of awkward silence.

“I could trot out that old saying of the Devil being an angel, but considering there are demons asking us to destroy the same target as the angels, then I don’t really know _where_ that leads us. We simply don’t have enough information to go on.” Alfred says, sighing and then taking a sip of his tea.

“Don’t like this.” Cassandra says with finality. She drums her fingers on the table and then all of them turn to look at Jason waiting for his input. If only Jason had any.

“What are you going to say, Father Todd?” Stephanie looks at him with more worry in her eyes than the time they’d run out of waffles and all the stores had been shut.

“Guess we’ll find out when they get here.” Jason says, running his hand through his hair and then tugging on his white forelock. The worried looks exchanged around the table do nothing to soothe his nerves, but it can’t be helped. They sip their tea in silence, settling in for the long wait until their visitors arrive in the evening.

They all feel it when the wards of St Sebastian’s shiver with power. Jason sighs, standing up to head outside. He’s not sure if it’s the devils or the angels, but it doesn’t make much difference he supposes. He strides outside, and in the shade of the wall around the graveyard, he spots Dick and his bosses? Family? Masters? waiting there. The angels are there too, standing as far away as they can while still waiting in the same general area. Jason takes a deep breath and marches over, knowing the others are following him.

“Father Todd.” Ra’s greets him, stepping forward, but staying within the shadow. Jason nods tersely at him. Bruce and Dick have stayed close to the wall, but Dick sends him a shaky smile, that Jason can’t help returning.

“Ra’s.” Jason rasps, his throat aching with an unexpected suddenness. The angels step forward, and they make an odd triangle shape between the graves, this meeting of three species. 

“Jason Todd. Have you come to a decision?” Kal-el says, and Jason notices his voice is pitched quieter than he’s previously pitched it. It seems like he’s making a concerted effort not to overwhelm the humans in his presence. That’s the point that Jason realises all the demons and angels are quelling their auras in light of the humans there. None of them are so much as stumbling or swaying the way they would usually with this many powerful beings around.

“I ha—.” Jason coughs, throat throbbing. “I have.” Kal-el smirks at Ra’s and then gestures to Jason to continue.

“Which is?” Ra’s throws his cape over his shoulder as he steps forward another step. Jason takes another deep breath and feels Alfred’s hand fall on his shoulder in support. He turns to flash Alfred a grateful smile.

“I’ll do it.” Jason hears a hiss from behind him, but he doesn’t turn to see if it was Cass or Steph. He needs to keep going while he has their full attention. “But my way. Which means a compromise from both of you.”

“We agree.” Ra’s says with what could be an amused look. Jason raises an eyebrow at that, it was almost too quick.

“You both want the same thing. Me to mop up your mess. You want me to do that, I need more information, and I want at least one of each of your parties to come with me as support.” Jason rasps out.

“Agreed.” Ra’s says, and that look is definitely outright amusement. “Bruce and Dick will accompany you, and give you all the information you could need. Providing of course, that our angelic counterparts agree...” Jason looks over to Kal-el, who is, unsurprisingly, frowning.

“We agree.” Kal-el says slowly, and Jason thinks Kal-el would have rather eaten glass than say that. “As the demons will be sending two, so shall we.”

“I’m so glad we all agree.” Jason says, trying not to roll his eyes, and he sees Dick huff in amusement in the corner of his eye. “Right now, we need information and a game plan. Maybe we can move this somewhere less public.”

“In that case, I shall take my leave.” Ra’s says, stepping backwards into the shadows and melting into them until he’s gone.

They head towards the currently empty Sunday school building. It’s consecrated ground like the graveyard, but not included in the Church’s wards as it stands empty at night. They end up sitting around a table and it’s an awkward but comical sight to see two such powerful beings sat at a table colourfully decorated with smiling cherubs and lambs and doves.

“So, who is this Joker, why’s he so bad and why do _I_ have to deal with it?” Jason says, his voice smoothing out now that they’re inside. 

“Why don’t you begin?” Bruce drawls at Kal-el, looking as done as Jason’s ever seen anyone, other than himself. Kal-el looks uncomfortable, but nods jerkily.

“His true name has been lost to time, but once he was one of God’s first creations. Our Lord and Father cast him out of heaven as his corruption was beyond redemption. He fell, becoming something worse than the most despicable the denizens of Hell. He has been working to come to the world of men and has finally succeeded. Many of my brethren have fallen to his violence. We must turn to you to do what we may not.” Kal-el intones as if reading from a book.

“He’s toxic insanity, too wild and unpredictable. Lord Lucifer shut him out of Hell, and in his own den of filth he grew strong. He’s killed or driven insane any we’ve sent to destroy him. He has the ability to heal from nearly all injuries we can inflict on him, but we’ve found that Hellfire does hurt him. It stops him from regenerating fully, but getting close enough to him to use it is the challenging part. We once managed to make him swallow some. He crawled away to the hole he came from and stayed there for several millennia.” Bruce says, taking a box out of thin air and putting it on the table, pushing it towards Jason. “Which gave us the idea to make Hellfire bullets, sourced from the original flames of Hell, but none of our weapons are strong enough to handle them. It’s been theorised that angelic weapons might be able to.”

“Alright, that’s who and why. Why is it Father Todd’s duty to do this?” Barbara says, holding up three fingers and ticking off one and two, leaving the third one up.

“Timing, location, training and willpower are the main factors. He’s a trained Exorcist with the ability to stand up to both demons and angels, as he so ably demonstrated yesterday morning. The Joker has an extra powerful aura, being one of god’s original creations who’s become corrupted in ways no one could have foreseen. We can’t even call him a demon, he doesn’t ascribe to any of the traits or abilities our kind has. There are maybe a handful of others in the world who might do, but none of the others are here now.” Bruce says, resting his hands on the table right over the beaming face of an angel holding a lamb. “Perhaps you would have done, Sister Barbara, if circumstances had been different. Father Pennyworth would’ve been a candidate when he was younger.”

Barbara glares at Bruce but stays silent. Jason rubs his hands over his face, and looks over to Dick who looks about as happy as Jason feels.

“Father Todd also has angelic guns. Our hellfire bullets will adapt to them, and I’m told using them takes specialist training? We don’t have the time to train anyone else up to use them.” Dick says, and there’s only a tiny jerk of his body to show that he’s kicked Bruce in the ankle. “With the three of us combining our powers through the guns and bullets wielded by a human, it should work.

“So, you need Father Jason, his guns and abilities. How are you going to take out this threat?” Alfred says from beside Jason. 

“Due to his nature, we have tracked him to a location on the outskirts of the city. I propose the five of us go there immediately, and smite him before he grows any stronger.” Kal-el looks over to the demons and Jason, taking their silence as a yes.

“Does everyone agree?” Kon-el breaks his silence, a slight quaver to his voice that Jason would say was fear on anyone else. 

“Agreed.” Bruce pushes back from his chair, standing up to draw himself to his full height. Dick looks around and nods, resigned to a fight that Jason has no idea if they can actually win. It’s a lot of theories and shoulds and barely any hard facts, but it’s all Jason’s going to get, it looks like.

“Let’s go.” Jason says, resolutely not looking at anyone. He doesn’t want to see their worried faces. He grabs the bullets.

“Wait, you should take Cass with you, she can help.” Barbara puts a hand on Jason’s arm and Jason looks down at it, and not at her face.

“No. If anything goes wrong, we need as many strong Exorcists available to protect every one, she should stay here.” Jason nods, standing and pulling away from Barbara. “Let’s get this shit over with, yeah?” He walks over to the door before anyone else can protest, Dick falling into step beside him. Jason’s torn between being incredible grateful he’s here and wanting him nowhere near anything or one so dangerous. When they step out into the overcast Gotham evening Dick takes his hand, linking their fingers and squeezing gently.

***

Jason heads to the parking lot, towards the car the parish uses mostly for grocery shopping and home Communion visits. Angels and demons will be the strangest cargo it’s had in its life by a long margin. Once the others catch up with him, he gets matching looks of disgust from both Bruce and Kal-el.

“Is there no other transportation we could use? I would even deign to agree to fly you there rather than _this_.” Kal-el says with a look of disgust. Jason doesn’t know what his problem is; that car is so clean you could eat off the floor panels.

“As much as it grates on me to agree with _him_. ...Is there nothing with more room?” Bruce grinds out, and Jason fancies he can hear Bruce’s teeth cracking in frustration.

“Nope, it’s this or nothing.” Jason grins despite himself, opening the door to the back and gesturing for them to get in. “You oversized birds and bats are just gonna have to fold up those wings and endure.” Kon-el folds his wings down as flat as he can and awkwardly clambers into the backseat. It’s barely enough space for the smallest of them, and Jason wouldn’t want to have to share that space. Dick proves the smartest, or at least speediest, of the bunch by darting forward and into the front seat with a slam of the door that Jason finds impressive.

“This indignity will not be forgotten, Jason Todd.” Kal-el says with a flaring of his eyes that Jason would find intimidating, if not for the fact he can see Kon-el mouth ‘You know nothing, Jason Todd’ from behind him. The random Game of Thrones reference nearly makes him laugh and Kon-el’s eyes crinkle up in a smile. He likes the younger angel, despite his attachment to Drake. Bruce sighs, and glares at nothing, before wedging himself into what’s left of the space in the back. Jason takes a moment to enjoy the schadenfreude as he closes the door on him, before getting in himself.

“So, which way are we headed?” Jason asks brightly, staring at the three cramped in the backseat from his spacious driver’s seat, while he starts the car.

“To Miagani Island, western side, south of the bridge to Founder’s Island.” Bruce grits out, shoving feathers out of his face. Jason bites his lip in an effort to stop the smirk from widening on his face.

“You can’t get more specific than that?” Jason knows how long that road is. There are plenty of places someone could hole up and build an army. “Well, at least it’s not in my parish, so clean up is _not_ my problem.” He knows that attitude is why he’s not overly popular amongst the other Exorcists, but Jason’s never cared about popularity.

“We’ll be able to pinpoint his presence the closer we get to it. “ Dick says, patting Jason’s hand on the stick shift.

“Well, that’s just dandy. So our game plan is what? Charge in and hope for the best?”

“No, you and Dick will go in and distract him, while I and the ...Angels...” Bruce sneers the word. “Go in and prepare to overcome him so that you can finish him off.”

“That sounds a lot like charging in and hoping for the best.” Jason says hoping someone will counter him with a more detailed plan than he just heard.

“Honestly? We’ve learnt that having plans around the Joker is pointless; he never reacts in a way that we can foresee. Reacting’s actually better than acting, if you can believe it.” Dick says, and while that doesn’t fill Jason with any confidence, at least he’s honest about it. 

They lapse into tense silence as they drive along. Jason’s thinking about all the ways this could go wrong, all the ways he could die or lose Dick in the oppressive quiet. It’s making him nervous so he does the one thing that can calm his nerves. 

“Dickie, if there was one place on earth you could go to for any reason, where would you go?” Jason says, hoping that Dick will take the bait and chatter Jason’s ear off like he wants him to.

“Thailand.” Dick says after a few moments of pondering, black and blue fingers tapping on his knee as if counting off and discounting places around the world.

“Interesting choice. Any reason in particular?” Jason says, when Dick doesn’t elaborate.

“Elephants. I’d like to see the elephants.” Dick smiles in nostalgic memory. “I’d like to see elephants again. I still miss Zitka even though I haven’t been with the circus since I was twelve. I told you about Zitka, right?”

“Many, many, many times, Dickie. You had an elephant for a babysitter. We all know that.” Jason snorts, recalling all the times Dick had pulled out his acrobatic costumes to model them for him, despite half of them being far too tight for him back then. Now that Jason thinks about it, that was probably the point. He did tend to end up kissing Dick quite often when they showed off more skin.

“Must we be forced to listen to this?” Kal-el mutters, and Jason glares at him in the rear view mirror. Fucking angels.

“Kal-el.” Kon-el says, in a tone of soft rebuke. “I’m sorry, please forgive him. This is only the second time he’s been on Earth. He’s not used to the ways of humans yet. He’s really very nice once you get to know him.”

“If you say so, Kon.” Dick says with the sort of untrustworthy smile that Jason usually hates, but in this instance completely agrees with; and they all lapse into silence once more. Jason drives over the bridge connecting Bleake with Miagani Island, and turns left, heading north.

“Stay close to the shore.” Kal-el says, frowning faintly. Jason turns onto the waterfront road, still heading north, figuring that they’ll find the place before he makes it the bridge to Founders Island. They all get tenser the further north they travel, until eventually Kon-el speaks up again.

“It’s here. Pull over.” Kon-el looks uneasy, and on a human Jason might’ve said he looks a little green. Jason pulls over, and empties his gun clips of the usual bullets, stowing them in the glovebox and filling both Robin and Nightwing’s clips with the demonic bullets. He shoves the car keys in a pocket, both the guns back into their holsters, and steps out of the car.

“Please tell me you are fucking kidding.” Jason says plaintively. “Not this place. Please.”

“No, it’s here. I can feel it, Jay.” Dick says, face grim and disgusted. Jason looks over to Pinkney Orphanage, with all the lights turned off and the front door hanging wide open. The malevolent air around the place, which is usually as depressing and oppressive as it could be, has turned into a miasma of horror. Jason takes a deep breath and locks the car, staring at his assorted companions. He stares bleakly at the orphanage once more, waiting for a last minute miracle that doesn’t come. 

“Here goes nothin’, I guess.” Jason walks towards the open door, hoping that somehow the kids staying there had scattered and gone before the Joker ever arrived. He makes it three steps inside the door before that hope is shattered.

There’s blood coating nearly every surface, random body parts litter the floor and stairs. The stench of death and blood is thick in the air, and Jason nearly chokes on it. He takes him two tries before his feet will move in further. Dick comes up behind him, an indecipherable look on his face, one Jason hasn’t seen before, and never wants to see again.

“Come on, I think he’s this way. It’s hard to tell with all this...” Dick trails off and looks over at Jason. Jason nods, trying to breathe through his mouth. He follows Dick as he starts walking, there’s so much slickness on the floor, Jason finds himself having to carefully pick his footing in order not to slip, trying not to look around him. He can’t help it though, every few feet is a fresh horror, random body parts having been torn from their owners and then stitched together to create dolls propped up against furniture or walls. Their tiny limbs barely hanging on with the stitches and their heads lolling obscenely and Jason can’t make himself look anymore if he wants to keep going. He crosses himself and sends up prayers for the children’s souls, not that he’s sure anyone’s listening anymore.

What limbs that aren’t sewn on in a mockery of everything natural, have bite marks, and broken bones poking through, and Jason’s stomach turns at the implications. He powers through until Dick stops suddenly in front of the closed door of the dining room.

“In there.” Dick whispers, hand reaching out for the knob. “Are you ready, Jay?”

“Hell no, I’m not fucking ready!” Jason whispers back, hands resting unsteadily on his holsters. “Open the door anyway, Dickie.”

***

Stepping into the dining room is like stepping into the aftermath of the Grand Guignol, or more accurately, a slaughterhouse. There are no obscenely made dolls here, just tiny severed limbs, and adult sized ones. Jason’s pretty sure that must be the remains of the staff. Body parts litter the dining tables and chairs; blood has splashed right up onto the light fixtures shading the entire room in a pale red, as if it needed an extra creepy vibe. They move forward and Jason side steps the body of a blonde woman, in a huge pool of blood, her legs hacked off above the knee, the lower legs replaced with giant springs wrapped around the stumps in a parody of prosthetics. Suddenly, the woman’s arm shoots out and grabs Jason’s ankle. He bites back a scream as the woman hauls herself closer to him. Dick moves to pull her away grabbing her under the arms.

“Please, please! Help me!” The woman says and Dick flips her over onto her back and they see her face. Her eyes have been scooped out. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry!” The woman would be weeping if she could, but the trails of blood from her empty sockets do a pretty good impression of tears, anyway. Jason reads the name tag on her coat, Dr Harleen Quinzel. Jason crosses himself and kneels down to take her hand.

“We’re here. Can you tell us what happened?” Jason says softly, holding Dr Quinzel’s blood soaked hand as gently as he can. 

“We... We didn’t know what we were doing! I swear. I’m so, so sorry. Oh God, all the kids. What he did to them...” Quinzel gasps, shaking in Dick’s hold. 

“Just go slow, Doctor. It’s alright.” Jason says soothingly. It isn’t and they both know it, but Jason’s had practiced calming down distraught parishioners, and sometimes all a person needs a calm steady presence to latch onto.

“We... We heard a man’s voice in the basement last night. He said he was trapped! We thought he’d wandered into the sewers. If we’d known...” Quinzel presses a hand over her mouth, trying to calm herself. “We helped him out. He was so grateful, smiling so wide. He looked so thin and hungry, we offered him something to eat. Oh God. We brought him up here. And then... Then... The kids. The kids.”

“You brought him into the dining room? And he ate the kids. Some of them anyway. Apparently he likes to play with his food.” Dick says face grim and voice low. Dr Quinzel nods.

“The kids, the other staff members... Everyone. I’m so sorry. So sorry. Can you forgive me?” Dr Quinzel tilts her face up to Dick’s, the way she would if she still had eyes. Dick looks over to Jason helplessly. Demons don’t really do forgiveness. 

“You’re forgiven, my child.” Jason rasps out, taking a small vial of Holy Water from his pocket. He tips a few drops out onto his fingers and draws a cross on Dr Quinzel’s forehead with his wet fingers. “Go to God, in his grace you will find salvation. Amen.” It’s not the usual prayer for last rites, but this isn’t the usual situation.

“Thank you. Thank you...” Quinzel trails off, her heart slowing and her breathing stopping as the blood loss finally gets to her. Dick lays her down and Jason crosses her arms over her chest as they give her a few precious moments of respect. When Jason stands up, he gives Dick a look of determination that he finds mirrored on Dick’s face. They have a job to do.

Walking to the back of the dining room, they spot their target. He’s reclined on one of the tables, and if Jason didn’t know any better he’d say the monster was asleep. As they draw closer, one toxic green eye opens and focuses on them.

“Nothing like a little after dinner nap, is there?” The monster hums. “And nothing like a little after dinner nap snack!” He lifts the severed arm of a kid and sucks at the end of the bone, pulling the marrow into his mouth with a disgusting smacking of his lips.

“Oh how rude of me! Would you like some? No? Well, you two are no fun. Party Poopers, no cake for you! But then you are so very late to the party. Why, everyone else I brought with me has left already! Out, out into the world to have such fun! Do you think you can chase them all down?” The Joker throws the arm over his shoulder and burps loudly as he sits up.

“Joker. We’ve come to take you down.” Dick says, voice hard and angry, flexing his hands and letting his talons lengthen. 

“But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before me.” Jason recites Luke 19.27, before launching into Psalm 23.5. “Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.”

“So, you must be the priest I’ve heard so much about. And _you’re_ his pet demon!” The Joker leans forward, eyes gleaming with interest.

“Shut your foul mouth!” Dick snarls, wings snapping out menacingly. “Don’t speak to him!”

“Ah, two lovers, I see. Well, why don’t you puppets both dance for me?” The Joker laughs, throwing his arms wide and Jason hates him more than he’s ever hated anything in his life. 

Jason finds his body moving without his say so, twisting to face Dick and throwing a punch before Jason can even really realise what’s happening. A second punch follows the first, but Dick’s dodged back enough that neither connect. Jason thinks Dick’s yelling, but he can’t really hear anything over the rush of blood in his ears and the sudden overwhelming need to crush, rend and destroy everything and everyone around him. Deep down he knows this is the Joker’s power controlling him, the desire and delight he’s feeling isn’t his, as he breaks a nearby chair over Dick’s head. Dick’s counterattacking, he realises dimly and Jason manages to jerk back just enough that those sharp talons only graze his right cheek instead of taking out his eye. 

Dick’s eyes are covered with a sickly black film, hiding the usual blue glow from sight. Jason wonders if his eyes have the same film on them. It’s enough to snap him out of the daze he’s in, and although the last thing he wants to do is attack Dick, he swings again, remembering that the plan is for them to distract the Joker. Continuing on this fight is as good a way as any. There’s a flurry of blows and kicks from the both of them, and Dick manages to knock Jason off his feet and onto his back, crouching over him with his talons pointing right at his neck. Jason’s pinned and about to be a goner if something doesn’t intervene. The others are taking so long, Jason has to wonder if they’ve fallen under the Joker’s power too. Jason’s about to reach for his gun and try to send off a distress shot when Kal-el and Bruce crash down through the dining room skylight, perfectly positioned to each grab one of the Joker’s arms. Kon-el follows a bare second later, grabbing a leg. 

“Dick, here!” Bruce snarls out, and Dick jolts, moving to Bruce’s side in an instant, grabbing the remaining leg and pinning it to the floor. Jason rolls up on to his side, trying to get his breath back into his lungs. Even with their superstrength the angels and demons are having a hard time keeping Joker pinned as he laughs and jerks and bucks under their grip. The Joker’s power is still swirling around in his head, and he fights to focus on the job he was sent here to do. Destroy the Joker. That one thought clears away some of the haze, leaving the rest to be directed at one target only. The Joker.

Jason pulls himself to his feet, staggering over to stand at the head of the monster he’s going to destroy. His hands shake as he unholsters both of his guns, feeling the angelic power build in both barrels. It’s more that he’s ever used before, more power than the time he shot at Kal-el and it’s honestly more than he should take. The Joker is laughing hysterically while the others fight to hold him down. Jason can’t hesitate. He aims Robin at the Joker’s heart, pulling the trigger. A beam of sickly green light spills from the bullet hole and Jason doesn’t wait to see if that was enough, he squeezes the trigger until all twelve bullets in Robin’s clip have been emptied into the Joker’s chest, more and more beams of green light shining out.

The Joker must realise that there’s Hellfire in the bullets, as he shrieks in pain. The amount of angelic and demonic power flowing through Jason is fighting with the Joker’s control and Jason’s vision is blurring, his hearing muffled by the sheer amount of energy within him, the world condenses down to the barrel of his gun, lit up with angelic runes. His arm swings down and Robin rests uselessly by his side. He lifts Nightwing and aims at the Joker’s head. He squeezes the trigger with no thought other than he must shoot. 

“No, no! This isn’t funny! NO, STOP. IT ISN’T FUNNY!” Joker screams loud enough that even Jason can hear him. Jason pays no mind to the screaming. He squeezes the trigger over and over until Nightwing’s empty, runes no longer glowing and no more bullets coming out. The others slowly move away from Joker’s corpse, watching as the flames from within it burst out, consuming the putrid corruption until there’s nothing but ash left, and then burning even the ash away to nothing. It’s over.

Dick gently takes hold of Jason’s arms and guides the now empty guns back into their holsters, forcing Jason to let go of them. Jason feels Dick’s hand move to his back gently guiding him away, Kon-el coming up the other side of him. They walk slowly back into the bloody hallway and Jason slips in the blood, both of them jerking forward to help him up, but Jason doesn’t shake them off. It’s not until they reach the front door and step through it that Jason feels like he can breathe again in the cool night air. He remembers wanting to say something to Kon-el? Yes, Kon-el. 

“Hey, Kon-el, Kon... Kon-el. Hey, Konneeeel?” Jason slurs out, tongue loose and sloppy in his mouth from exhaustion, arms firmly wedged over the shoulders of the younger angel and Dick as they help Jason walk back through the parking lot towards the car. Jason’s calling it ‘help’ in the fuzzy mess that passes for his thoughts right now. He knows they’re taking most of his weight and he’s barely moving his legs to help move him.

“Yes, Father Todd. What do you wish to tell me?” Kon-el says with a faint but sincere smile, his robe pulsing briefly with light before dimming as he turns to look at Jason while they pause their ‘walking’.

“I wanna talk to you ‘bout Fa’er Pennyworth, ‘n’ the fac’ tha’ you guys owe me.” Jason says quietly, while he hangs off Dick’s shoulder shamelessly. Dick gives him a reassuring squeeze as Jason swallows around his dry throat. He looks over and Dick flashes him a comforting look, giving him the boost he needs to continue. 

“You guys really do owe him, he’s done you a great service. You owe him a debt!” Dick says, milking the moment for all it’s worth. “And don’t tell him the rewards are waiting for him in heaven. You’re not stupid enough to think he’ll end up _there_ with me under his arm.”

“I see.” Kon-el says with a faint frown, clearly not seeing in the slightest, turning to Jason, the quizzical look doesn’t fading from his face. “And how should we repay you?”

“I don’ wan’ anythin’ for me, but there’s somethin’ you c’n do for Fa’er Pennyworth, at the righ’ time.” Jason’s about to ask a lot, but hell, turnabout is fair play in his opinion.

“I’m listening, Father.” Kon-el tilts his head in a bird-like way, and Jason grips Dick’s shoulder a little tighter as he outlines his plan.

As Jason talks, he’s all too aware of Bruce manipulating the Hellfire raging through the building and razing what’s still standing down to ash on the grounds. He sends a silent prayer up for the lost souls that used to live there, and hopes that someone thinks to send a list of names in to the authorities. There’s nothing left to bury, and probably no one to remember them, either. By the time Jason, Dick, and Kon-el have made it to the car, the any traces of the orphanage are gone, and Bruce is putting out the flames, leaving nothing but a smoking burnt area in the grounds.

The last thing Jason sees as gets in the car with Dick, collapsing into the back seat, is Kal-el hovering in the air, sending waves of holy fire to purge the taint of the demonic ash. The light from the holy fire becomes blinding the longer it goes on. Jason closes his eyes and slips into unconsciousness, seeing nothing but white behind his eyelids. He wakes to Dick gently shaking his shoulder. He realises that he has no idea when Kon-el left, or Bruce and Kal-el for that matter. To be honest, he’s too tired to care.

“I’ll come see you later, alright? You need a shower and a nap.” Dick says softly, and Jason nods. 

He stumbles out of the car, somehow making it to the kitchen door without falling over. Alfred and the others are busy taking the service in the church so Jason makes it up to his room without having to speak to anyone, which is a huge relief. After a brief shower, he flops onto his bed, exhausted like he’s never been before, but sleep doesn’t come, no matter what position he curls himself into or how many blankets he pulls over his comforter. Sighing, Jason drags himself from his bed and pulls on a loose comfortable hoodie and sweatpants and heads downstairs. 

Stepping out of the kitchen door, the cool night air is a balm on his face, making his shoulders relax as he shuffles over to the lychgate. Dick appears moments later, with a small smile on his face. Something makes Jason turn and look at the kitchen window, and he sees Alfred standing there, probably doing some dishes. He waves to Alfred from lychgate, getting a relieved smile and a wave in return. Alfred moves from sight, and Jason turns to Dick, taking in the glow of his eyes and his loose stance. Jason realises it’s been quite a while since he’s seen Dick look so relaxed.

“I’m so glad you came, Jason.” Dick purrs, his wings fluttering behind him excitedly. 

“You always, are Dickie. So what brings you here tonight?” Jason grins, resting his hands on the top of the gate.

“Can’t a guy visit his stupidly handsome and competent boyfriend without answering any questions?” Dick says with a smirk, resting his hands on Jason’s.

“I can think of much better things to do with your mouth, baby.” Jason pulls the gate open and steps through it into Dick’s arms.

***

Alfred walks into the kitchen, early in the morning and switches on the kettle to fix himself his first cup of tea for the morning. It’s not until he turns that he sees Jason’s guns, the ones he inherited from Alfred after all the training that Alfred had given him on the sly during his time at Seminary and the Exorcist course, still in their holsters, neatly placed on the kitchen table along with a scattered handful of bullets and two letters, one addressed to him and the other to Stephanie in Jason’s hand. His heart sinks down in his chest and he has to take a moment with his eyes closed before he can force himself upstairs to check Jason’s room.

The door has been left ajar, and Alfred pushes through it with trepidation. The bed is neatly made and clearly unslept in. He checks the wardrobe, and only Jason’s casual clothes are gone, leaving his suits, cassocks and dog collars. The drawer of the bedside table is missing the battered pack of cards that were all Jason had left of his mother.

The kettle has boiled by the time Alfred comes back downstairs, so he makes a cup of tea and sits down at the table to read his letter. Jason thanks him for taking care of him all these years, for everything he taught him, and for being the father he’d always needed. That he would miss Alfred immensely, but that it was time for him to move on. For Alfred to take care of himself and to remember Jason fondly. That he’s leaving his guns for when Stephanie has passed her Exorcist examinations.

Alfred folds up the letter reverently, to place it in the breast pocket of his shirt where it will remain for the rest of his life, until he dies. He sips his tea and doesn’t wipe away the tears as they fall. An hour later when Stephanie arrives, Alfred has fully composed himself. The guns are safely locked away until the right time. He makes her some coffee and places a full mug by her elbow as she reads her own letter. He sits down with his second cup of tea and watches her read.

“He says he’s proud of me... That he knows I’ll make a great Exorcist.” Stephanie says, staring at the letter with a mix of horror and gratitude. “He’s not really gone, is he?”

“Yes, he is.” Alfred says, staring out at the lychgate, mourning the loss of the man he considers a son.

“Shouldn’t we tell someone? Maybe we can still stop him?” Stephanie says, still staring at the letter clenched in her white knuckled hands.

“I’ll inform the Diocese and the police of Father Todd’s absence tomorrow, after forty-eight hours.” Alfred wants to hate that gate, but there’s a lightness of feeling under the heavy grief, that stops him. Where ever Jason is now, it’s where he needs to be, and Alfred can’t find it in his heart to be anything but happy for his boy. 

“We’re just going to let him go?” Stephanie looks up at Alfred, her braid slipping over her shoulder and she twines her fingers into the end, trying to comfort herself.

“We’re much too late to change his fate, I’m afraid.” Alfred stands up and goes to make himself yet another cup of tea. He’ll need fortification for the busy day ahead. There’s so much to do and a flock of parishioners to look after.

**Author's Note:**

> Don't panic - this isn't the end.


End file.
